What to do in your garden in July

• Maincrop potatoes should be earthed up again
• Make regular sowings of salad crops
• Finish planting out winter brassicas
• Keep adding material to your compost heap
• Why not experiment with edible flowers

Read more about growing your own veg..

See our guide to the 10 easiest vegetables to grow

Thin out apple and pear fruitlets

Look after your strawberry plants

Partially prune blackcurrants

Fruit garden jobs..

Mulch moisture-loving herbs

Take softwood cuttings

Thin direct-sown seedlings

Herb garden jobs..

Water hanging baskets

Collect and sow seed

Don't cut your lawn too short

Ornamental garden jobs..

• Mulching and water conservation

  • Try and keep all bare soil covered either with plants or use mulches on the surface to keep moisture in. Grass clippings can be piled onto beds, several inches thick. Don't cover young seedlings (apart from weeds) and don't pile up too close to plant stems.
  • More hints on saving water and watering here.
  • Check compost bins from time to time. If the contents appear too dry, add some water and 'wet' waste, such as kitchen peelings and grass clippings. Take the opportunity to turn the contents too, this will help to aerate it and activate the bacteria that help to decompose all your waste into lovely rich, dark humus to put back on the garden.

• If you find all your bins are full at this time of year, start a new one. Contact your local authority to see if they have any cut price bins on offer, or see our factsheet on making a compost bin (requires members' password to access online).

  
  
  

• Inevitably, weeds and pests increase in number as summer progresses. Why not visit the gardens at Ryton and participate in one of our courses to learn more about how to control these problems in an organic garden?

• This section of the Garden Organic website - What to do in your garden now - is produced by the Information Section of Garden Organic – the organic organisation. If you are a member of Garden Organic, you also have access to our full range of factsheets and other useful information on the Garden Organic website, and to our Organic Gardening helpline – by email, phone and letter. More information here about the benefits of joining Garden Organic.

• Organic Gardening "Do's"

  A checklist for going organic in your garden

  For more detailed guidance on what is, and isn't organic, have a browse through the Garden Organic Guidelines for Organic Gardeners